Hmmm, in my pea brain, I don't enjoy the view while I'm sleeping so I'd put the living areas where I could enjoy the view for the better part of the day.

In the interest of aging in place, I'd suggest keeping the master on the first level.

Hopefully your view of the lake isn't facing west.

You don’t say how old/physically fit you are.

I would absolutely have the master on the main floor. Or at least have one bedroom on the main floor that COULD be a master.

Master on main and the loft area for the view. I don't spend any time in the master during the day and at night I sleep. Better to have the view from an area that you would use during the day.

Both. No reason you can’t take one of the upstairs bedroo for now and move downstairs if needed.

The perfect scenario would be 2 masters - one on main & one up but the budget may not allow for that. We are in our late 50's and active so stairs are fine but after living in a rancher, I do love having everything on one level. I think I will go with my 'gut' and have the master on the main but have an area to enjoy the south facing view from an upper balcony. Thank you for your insights :)

Perhaps a sitting room on the second floor, to supplement the first floor living room and master bedroom, would work to catch views on occasion.

I wouldn't worry about resale at this stage if you're planning to be in this home for a good long while. I like the idea of having two en suite bedrooms--one up, one down--so you can use the upper one now while you're still able, and can move downstairs later on if climbing the stairs becomes more difficult.

While you're at it, even if you're not ready for grab bars in the bathroom yet, ask your contractor to put in the blocking for them during the build so the bars can easily be added later. This is a good time, too, to be thinking about barrier-free showers with a bench and handshower.

A friend had a house with harbor views from the 2nd floor. All her bedrooms were on the first floor - it was an upside-down house. As she got older and had health/mobility problems, she wished she had installed an elevator. Her guests were also older and had mobility problems and it was a trial for everyone to get up those steps, but it would have been a crime to have given that view to bedrooms used only after dark.

Trust me on this one, you need the master on the first floor for unexpected issues that -- trust me -- can actually come. No family history, no problems, no anything. "...it happens."

In the interest of aging in place, I'd suggest keeping the master on the first level.

Agree. If you're already retired, I'm assuming you're not young (sorry, no insult intended), so even if you're going strong now, you don't want an illness or just plain aging to FORCE you to move ... especially when it'd be physically more difficult for you.

A master on the first level is practical for several other reasons too:

- When you don't have guests, you can close off the upstairs and not pay for heating /cooling.

- If you ever need a live-in caregiver, it'd be practical to give that person the upstairs. You'd both have a little more privacy.
I would build two master suites, one on the main floor and one on the second floor.

Great idea, but expensive.

It doesn’t have to be two “master suites” with two huge showers and two giant tubs and two huge closets. I would do two bedrooms up with a lovely, spacious bathroom to share. Then I’d build a nice guest suite with accessible, or at least, partially accessible bathroom on the first floor. I’d make myself at home on the second floor until I needed to move down. Best of both worlds and no more expensive than either plan a or plan b.

Unlike some, I really do enjoy my master bedroom view. I don't see it in winter but now that daylight starts earlier, it is just a joy to wake up to it. Toss open a window and smile! (Well, once it gets above 45 F in the mornings....)

Now, that being said... the living part of my home is all on one floor. IF this were a choice between no view and main floor, and great view on top floor, given price constraints -- I'm putting my master bedroom on the main floor. The convenience of this outweighs the second idea. Yes, I'd have a place to sit upstairs to enjoy that view, too, but having had to be on crutches a couple times in recent history, I want my bed on the main.

But Auntthelma's suggestion is workable as well.

If you have to climb the stairs to see the view, it shouldn’t be a consideration at all.

Put the master on the first floor and landscape to perfection. The yard will be your view 24/7/365.

If your only view is from upstairs can you put in an elevator? If you think you need a master in the main for mobility, how often will you really walk up the stairs to enjoy the view?

I think resale will be affected if you build a house with a lake view but can’t actually see the lake from many rooms.

As a practical matter, planning for a master on the first floor is a good idea. Auntthelma's is a happy medium, and no need to build a powder room , so not much extra expense.

But I like to wake up to light and looking outside in the morning, so I'd keep the coffee maker upstairs in either case.

elevator? Or one of those things(can't think of the name) that attaches to the railing of the stairs where you sit in a chair and takes you upstairs/downstairs. We're both are going to get older. My MIL broke her leg climbing stairs in her 70's.

A three bed house with one bed on the main and two upstairs, virtually screams empty nester. So does the word "loft" with the view down to a great room. Put it on the main floor. Put the laundry WITH it. So.................ask yourself about that function as you're thinking of the view. The one you'll see perhaps an hour of each day.

A client of mine with a second floor master and empty nester home, has spent the last two months helping hubby who broke his leg to smithereens running / hit ice. The chair lift..........is pretty butt ugly.

You should always take advantage of a great view when you can even if its from a bedroom. You don't need to look at the view all day; waking up to a lake view is a wonderful experience.